High heels – style afoot

Adored, extreme, seductive, dangerous, very confusing, total – there are a lot of words that could describe the fashionable pump.

Power on high

So young and so influential, you could say of heels that have been around for 70 years. Their short but colourful history have seen periods of delight, dynamic development, triumph, rejection, and finally renaissance. They have not only accompanied but influenced the presence and perception of women in the modern world. High heels have experienced many changes in the way they have been regarded and understood. Today, they are synonymous with prestige, power, strength, sex appeal and the independence of women. Earlier, in the 1950s, they offered a means of needed change, of rebellion against fixed social roles. Famous actresses of the time, such as Marilyn Monroe and Diana Dors inspired millions of women with the desire to live and dress for themselves. The fates of the artists were as colourful as their creations, including sky-high stilettos, and there is still discussion about the role that the pump played in the transformations witnessed over the years. Society puzzled over the cost of the release of women from the well-trodden path that was their role in the context of enslavement, to a new phenomenon – the perception of women through the prism of sexualisation. The next decade, and their socio-cultural changes, effectively reduced the height of the heels. Stilettos and their lovers around the world were brought flat shoes – among others, the famous ballerina - promoting a new type of femininity full of youthful charm and naturalness. For some women, high heels were inherently associated with liberation and strength. For others, their absence meant the same thing. Heels returned at the end of the seventies, when British shoe designer Terry de Havilland created pumps for Zandra Rhodes. In more recent history high heel shoes have helped create the image of the modern woman in the TV series "Sex and the City". The show’s heroines are working and successful, and they consume and acquire luxury goods, including of course the pump.

Who brought us the pump?

Roger Vivier, a prominent French designer with Dior, is hailed as the father of high heel shoes. Having been associated with the shoe industry since the age of 17, he blended a brilliant sense of aesthetics with technical skills that put his work proudly in top spot. Celebrities and representatives of royal courts queued for his creations. Perfectly fitting shoes have become elaborate, brilliant complements to the crown of Dior creations. Paying heed to the feminine shape, New Look gained a worthy foundation. The specific design of high heels forced continuous improvements, and they underwent changes in shape, height and the thickness of the heel. Thinner and longer posed a danger of fracture, so Charles Jordan introduced the metal rod, and the aluminum pad created by Mehmet Kurdash. Any doubts held by designers were dispelled by the newly invented plastic heel with insert. Improvements to high heels aimed not only to protect the body of the woman wearing them, but also of men who succumbed to injuries, for example, while dancing – not to mention the permanent heel marks in floors. The workshops of shoe geniuses such as Vivier, Ferragamo, and Perugia continued improving their models.

What to look for in high heels?

First of all, high quality. Only then can we guarantee proper design, careful workmanship and have no doubts about standards. Leather pumps from an excellent brand will provide many years of pleasure with their irresistible charm. The height of the heels is an individual matter, so consider a stabilising shoe platform. After purchasing matching black stilettos, allow yourself to experiment more boldly, perhaps with silver heels. The Vitkac.com online store offers hundreds of examples from the finest fashion houses. New high heeled shoes highlight the beauty of the luxurious dresses, and the whole styling can be enriched by women’s jewellery